What We’re Learning

Detroit Public Television looks to play bigger role in school readiness

Through a pilot launched in Detroit’s Brightmoor neighborhood last fall, the station is aiming for bigger impact in early childhood education. It’s bringing caregivers together to discuss best practices, sharing its Pre-School-U curriculum to educate teachers, caregivers and parents on the developmental stages of young children, bringing its programming and apps directly to children and parents and exploring ways to use them to increase school readiness. Among the things DPTV is contemplating: virtual preschool.

The moves are the latest in the station’s decade-long bid to create a niche for itself as an early childhood educational resource and part of its new, five-year plan to engage with early childhood caregivers and parents across Detroit and the region. Public television was built on the idea that there ought to be a station that serves community needs, such as putting the symphony on TV and preparing kids for school, said DPTV President and CEO Rich Homberg.